Post by cinemo on Aug 29, 2013 7:53:04 GMT -5
On August 29, in 1865, the „Connor Battle“ , also known as the „Battle of the Tongue River” in Wyoming took place. That fight was the major conflict in the so called Powder River Expedition of 1865.
Ironically, a short time before the battle, a Cheyenne with family, who were on their way to the Arapaho village, had spotted the army column and had riden fast to alert the camp. Chief Black Bear and Old David, who felt secure in the remote area, believed their informant was mistaken, that he might have seen other Indians coming over the trail or perhaps some buffalo. But when an Arapaho riding a fast horse arrived with the same disquieting news, the camp was thrown into a state of panic.
On August 29, 1865, less than a year before the establishment of Fort Phil Kearny, 125 cavalry with 90 Pawnee scouts, under the command of Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor, attacked Chief Black Bear's Arapaho Indian camp along the Tongue River in Northeastern Wyoming. According to Capt. Palmer, "Unfortunately for the women and children, our men had no time to direct their aim; bullets from both sides and murderous arrows filled the air; squaws and children, as well as warriors, fell among the dead and wounded."
The warriors made a brief stand while their families scattered. The Indians fled up a small stream, Wolf Creek, and Connor followed at a gallop, only to be driven back. While the troops destroyed the village including tents and food supplies for the winter, the Arapahos launched an aggressive counter-attack, which drove Connor down the Tongue River.
Only the use of howitzers, holding the Indians at a distance during the defensive withdrawal, saved the out-numbered soldiers from serious loss, though several soldiers died from injuries later. This was the single most important military engagement of the three-pronged Powder River Expedition of 1865, which included the expeditions of Cole and Walker. It caused the Arapaho, thought now to be non-hostile previous to the attack, to attack Sawyers' Expedition shortly after, and to join forces with Sioux and Cheyenne at the Fetterman Battle in December of 1866.
The Arapaho village of Black Bear is often considered non-belligerent by historians today, though by reading the diary of Captain H.E. Palmer (from Coutant's History of Wyoming) it is apparent that the soldiers were not aware of this.Connor's attack was probably influential in causing the Arapaho to attack the Sawyers' Expedition shortly after, to ally with the Sioux and Cheyenne at the Fetterman Fight the next year near Fort Phil Kearny, and to fight at the Rosebud Battle and the Battle of the Little Bighorn more than a decade later. The far reaching effects of these conflicts continued into the development of the reservation system (which placed the Arapaho Tribe on the Wind River Reservation west of the Big Horn Mountains) and into relationships between tribes and non-Indian governments today.
Sources:
The Arapahoes, Our People, by V. Cole Trenholm
www.philkearny.vcn.com/connorbattlefield.htm
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Tongue_River
cinemo
Ironically, a short time before the battle, a Cheyenne with family, who were on their way to the Arapaho village, had spotted the army column and had riden fast to alert the camp. Chief Black Bear and Old David, who felt secure in the remote area, believed their informant was mistaken, that he might have seen other Indians coming over the trail or perhaps some buffalo. But when an Arapaho riding a fast horse arrived with the same disquieting news, the camp was thrown into a state of panic.
On August 29, 1865, less than a year before the establishment of Fort Phil Kearny, 125 cavalry with 90 Pawnee scouts, under the command of Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor, attacked Chief Black Bear's Arapaho Indian camp along the Tongue River in Northeastern Wyoming. According to Capt. Palmer, "Unfortunately for the women and children, our men had no time to direct their aim; bullets from both sides and murderous arrows filled the air; squaws and children, as well as warriors, fell among the dead and wounded."
The warriors made a brief stand while their families scattered. The Indians fled up a small stream, Wolf Creek, and Connor followed at a gallop, only to be driven back. While the troops destroyed the village including tents and food supplies for the winter, the Arapahos launched an aggressive counter-attack, which drove Connor down the Tongue River.
Only the use of howitzers, holding the Indians at a distance during the defensive withdrawal, saved the out-numbered soldiers from serious loss, though several soldiers died from injuries later. This was the single most important military engagement of the three-pronged Powder River Expedition of 1865, which included the expeditions of Cole and Walker. It caused the Arapaho, thought now to be non-hostile previous to the attack, to attack Sawyers' Expedition shortly after, and to join forces with Sioux and Cheyenne at the Fetterman Battle in December of 1866.
The Arapaho village of Black Bear is often considered non-belligerent by historians today, though by reading the diary of Captain H.E. Palmer (from Coutant's History of Wyoming) it is apparent that the soldiers were not aware of this.Connor's attack was probably influential in causing the Arapaho to attack the Sawyers' Expedition shortly after, to ally with the Sioux and Cheyenne at the Fetterman Fight the next year near Fort Phil Kearny, and to fight at the Rosebud Battle and the Battle of the Little Bighorn more than a decade later. The far reaching effects of these conflicts continued into the development of the reservation system (which placed the Arapaho Tribe on the Wind River Reservation west of the Big Horn Mountains) and into relationships between tribes and non-Indian governments today.
Sources:
The Arapahoes, Our People, by V. Cole Trenholm
www.philkearny.vcn.com/connorbattlefield.htm
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Tongue_River
cinemo